Fairbanks: Farmed Fish, 504 Lawsuit, the Board of Regents, Museum Grant Bill and Fairbanks Events

February 28, 2025

Dear Neighbors,

Today is day 38 of our 120-day legislative session here in Juneau and that means that we are nearly 1/3 of the total way through! It also means that legislators will be returning home over the next two weekends to host town hall meetings, visit with constituents and provide updates on the progress of the budget passage through the State House. I will also return to Fairbanks for a brief weekend to meet with you either individually or at a large town hall meeting or at one of the many public events scheduled for the weekend. Here are some highlights of the week and some details of how to learn more about the start of the 34^th Alaska Legislature.

I hope to see you at one of these events!

Agriculture, Food and Farmed Fish (ick)

Governor Dunleavy recently introduced and Executive Order creating a new Department of Agriculture! I am excited by the prospect and even joined him in calling for a new department to focus on agriculture through legislation almost 10 years ago and then chartered the Legislative Food and Farm Caucus to highlight agricultural, aquaculture, mariculture, timber and forest products of our state. Afterall, 20% of the forested lands in the United States are right here in Alaska!

The EO will have a simple up or down vote at future joint session of the Legislature which complicates the deal because a department cannot just be created from thin air. It needs resources, forethought about operations and state funding to succeed. A bill or legislation to create the Department of Agriculture would have been preferred so the legislature could thoroughly vet it through committees, involve stakeholders and farmers and understand how any of the public funding will be spent, wisely.

Another wrinkle that the Governor has given the Department of Agriculture arrived last week with his introduction of a measure to open Alaska up for finfish farming which has been banned for decades. Fish farming is done in many countries, but I am concerned with this measure that seems to be poorly articulated. While there will be no salmon allowed to be farmed, it might introduce new species of fish which could crowd out our own natural, wild stocks of fish. I am very concerned that Alaska could be home to large, industrial fish farms owned by out of state corporations to the demise of our own Alaska fishery.

Example of a fish farm

A Poor Use of State Funds?

In September, the Alaska Department of Law signed on to the Texas vs Becerra lawsuit, which would effectively eliminate the Americans with Disabilities Act Section 504, invalidating 48 years of federally established law and protections against discrimination for individuals with disabilities. The Attorney General, Treg Taylor, has been receiving a lot of criticism from disability advocates, seniors, parents of children with learning disabilities and disabled veterans.

Last Thursday, Taylor issued a statement saying that the lawsuit was seeking just to eliminate the final rule in section 504 of the ADA, which added protection for transgender Americans, rather than the ADA in its entirety. While disability advocates disagree and believe it is a much larger attempt that would lead to unwinding the entire protections set forth in the act, it is still a misplaced expense during a time when the state has been trying to be frugal with every dollar.

I have been against this lawsuit since its inception and have written Treg Taylor a letter asking that he reconsider, support Alaskans who may face future discrimination based on the protections in the Americans with Disabilities Act and return funding to the state budget.

Check out this article (HERE) about the issues related to the ADA and the lawsuit of which Alaska has involved itself.

The University of Alaska Rejects Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Last Friday, the UAF Board of Regents passed a motion to remove all the terms ‘diversity’ and ‘equity’ and ‘inclusion’ on all UAF websites, print or electronic communications, programs and positions. The board of regents voted in favor of the motion, except for Albiona Selima, the student regent. The Board of Regents claim that they are still dedicated to keeping UAF an inclusive, nondiscriminatory institution but were forced to comply with the President Trump Executive Order. Many feel that this mandate was premature, as the Federal mandates are still being reviewed by the courts.

Only 60 years ago, in the summer of 1963, Vivian Malone Jones and James Hood became the first Black students to successfully enroll at the University of Alabama. The scene of the two students, Governor George Wallace, a crowd of onlookers and the Alabama National Guard at Foster Auditorium has been replayed in historical novels, adaptations and the movie Forrest Gump. Universities had been at the forefront of the battles to improve an inclusive education system that based admission on merit. UAF has been a part of a system that includes things like the summer Rural Alaska Honors Institute every summer, the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program and even our UAF Troth Yeddha’ Campus.

I am very disappointed in the decision by our University Board of Regents.

Vivian Malone Jones and James Hood in front of the University of Alabama

Museum Bill

Alaska has an amazingly rich cultural history and is it prized among the most cherished of experiences for Alaskans and visitors alike! Alaska is also a very young state with our own very brief history from being a goldrush state to emerging an arctic nation attracting global attention. A state shows pride in our culture through our display of great pieces of art, libraries of literature and articles of historical significance and our museums play a key role in bringing the history and culture to the people.

I have introduced a bill, Senate Bill 110, that would establish a grant funding for museum construction and expansion because of my love of history and support for preservation of our culture. Much like the State Library Grant Fund that helped support the North Pole Library and the Noel Wien Library addition, the State Museum Construction and Grant Fund would help to support museum expansion, purchase artifacts of importance and provide for displays for these works of art. The grant fund would bring together state, foundation, non-profit and private donor funding together to help to enhance museums big and small in every area of Alaska. A competitive grant system would be created within the current Department of Education and Early Development and dole out funds from time to time as appropriated by the legislature.

The bill is in the early stages of legislative hearings around the state. Public testimony on the bill will be collected by me and can be sent directly to the Senate State Affairs Committee to be put in the public record. The address is Senate.State.Affairs@akleg.gov. The bill will also be heard for the first time in the Senate Education Committee on Friday, March 7 at 9am.

Our very own Museum of the North!

My Events

As I’m heading to Fairbanks tomorrow, I want to remind you about the events that I will be holding over the weekend:

Town Hall Meeting: Saturday March 1, 11:30 am – 1:30 pm at Centennial Hall in Pioneer Park

Constituent Coffee: Sunday March 2, 9-11 am at the Alaska Coffee Roasting Company

Pizza Meet and Greet: Sunday March 2, 12:30 –2 pm at the Badger Plaza House of Fire Pizza

Other Fairbanks Events

I’m very excited that I am going to Fairbanks this weekend, because there are so many great events going on, in addition to mine.

Festival of Native Arts: Thursday, February 27 – Saturday March 1, 5:30 pm at the Davis Concert Hall on the Troth Yeddha’ Campus.

The Festival of Native Arts is next week. This year’s theme is “Forever: Our Ways of Life.” The event includes performances by Alaska Native dance groups as well as crafts for sale by Alaska Native artists from all over Alaska.

The Fabulous Feminist Fundraiser: Saturday March 2, 5:30 pm at the 8 Star Events Center.

The Fabulous Feminist Fundraiser will include dinner, a silent auction, a dessert auction and lots of fun feminists. I try to attend every year – see you there!

Iditarod Start: Monday March 3, 11 am at Pike’s Waterfront Lodge

The Iditarod’s official start has been moved to Fairbanks this year!

The ceremonial start will be in Anchorage on Saturday March 1, as planned. Then the race will officially begin in Fairbanks on Monday March 3 at 11 am at Pike’s Landing. Don’t miss out on this rare opportunity to watch the Iditarod start. There are ten mushers from the Interior racing this year – go cheer them on!

My Staff and I are Here for You

I will continue to keep you updated both on cool events that are going on around Fairbanks, as well as what I’m working on in Juneau throughout the session. If you have any questions about anything going on in the Capitol or at home, feel free to give me a call or shoot me an email – as always, my staff and I are working for you. We will assist you with the issues important to you and your family.

Working Hard for Fairbanks Families,